Horrific

An 8 months old pregnant lady is asleep last night in nice apartment in Deep Ellum in Dallas. A stray bullet comes in from a neighboring highway (they think) striking the woman and killing the unborn child. Fox 4 News is all over it.

(And the anti-abortion comments, which are sure to come, are very predictable.)

Newsiness?

Ok, he allegedly "did wrong", but is this story the equivalent of 9/11? Above, in order, is today's crazy coverage by Fox 4 News, the Star-Telegram, and the Dallas Morning News about some guy fondling a 14 year old boy. Sheesh, I know it's a sad state of affairs, but arrests like this happen every single day. How this guy got as much coverage as Paris Hilton is a bit of a mystery.

Hey, I think the stabbing in Decatur is more newsworthy.

The 2007 Summer Interns of D Magazine

Who is in charge of hiring over there? Me?

(Source.)

Ya Might Want To Avoid A Whopper Right Now

Getting reports of a "stabbing" at the Exxon/Quiznos/Burger King in Decatur.

Developing......

Edit: Drove by it around 2:00 p.m. and there was a big bag on nothing going on. The Messenger is reporting that a man has been flown to a "metroplex hospital" with a stab wound to the chest. An emailer advised that four of the gas pumps had been roped off earlier. High gas prices cause somebody to flip out?

Edit #2: The Messenger, and I'm paraphrasing here, has reported that the incident involved a love triangle with some literal back-stabbing going on. Arrested: Leonardo Deluna, 28, of Greenwood. In pain: Robert Farias, 40. The woman (who better be hot): Christina Harwell.

Thinking Of The Fall

In a story today about high school athletic officials and how much they are paid, this sentence jumped out at me: "Texas is one of the few states that pays officials based on a percentage of gate receipts . . . . "

Is that true?

How much does a football referee/official make during a Decatur game? A Chico game? An Alvord game? Let me hear from ya.

Teacher . . .

. . . news.

If Fox News Had Been Around

Ya Think . . .

. . . this guy might be a tad bit hard to work for?

Some Girl . . .

. . . I've never heard of (Carolina Ardohain) says, "It rained in Wise County this morning!"

I've Already Got DWI Tired Head

Tarrant County has always had a weird DWI plea bargain process. First time offenders have, for the last 20 years, been offered two options (1) a two year probation + a fine, or (2) 30 to 45 days in "work detail".

The latter meant that a defendant would show up at a designated place and do legitmate labor for 8 hours. That would count as "one day" against the sentence. But the sheriff always gave "3 for 1" credit for this work detail, meaning that 10 days of 8 hour work would wipe out a 30 day sentence. Some defendants would choose that option instead or the arse whip that is probation.

Now, after 20 years, the Tarrant County district attorney's office has declared that the "work detail" is an illegal sentence and will no longer offer it as a plea bargain option. Richard Alpert of the DA's office made the decision (which is kind of odd since he has been there since at least 1991 - and the policy was in place back then.)

But I completely disagree with the Sheriff that the change in policy will cause jail overcrowding. Heck, it will have no impact at all. Once the "work release" option is eliminated from the plea bargain options, defendants will simply take the probation.

Random Sports Thought

As I ever-so-briefly looked in on the NBA Finals a second ago, I noticed that San Antonio was up by 10 in the fourth quarter. They, of course, hold a 2 game lead.

That series is over.

Which, ironically, is the exact same thing we were saying about the Mavericks one year ago as they were in even a better situation (13 points up with 6:30 left in the fourth). They probably won't have that chance again in another 20 years.

Screenshots . . .

. . . from Fox 4 News' story tonight on the usage of water by drillers in the Barnett Shale. (It will eventually be posted here.) The middle pic is interesting - that's the percentage of water that will be used in Wise and Jack counties in 2010 by natural gas drillers. That's a lot of water.

And that's some professional lighting on Kevin Burns. Check out that background. Check out the dark left side. Does he have a press agent?

"Ok, Babe. Follow My Instructions And I'll Have You Beefed Up In No Time"

I Really Don't Know

Quite a few people have asked me "What in the heck happened to C4U's blog?" (link, which is now a shadow of its former self, is to the right).

The answer: I'm not sure. She informed me via email that she "chucked it" but there was no elaborate explanation or, more precisely, there was no explanation at all. For those that (used to) read it, you learned that she recently was elected to public office so perhaps that had something to do with it. Or not. I don't know.

It's kind of like the end of The Sopranos. We have to speculate. But maybe it will rise from the dead.

And who the heck is she, you ask? I met her in 1992 when she was an intern in the Tarrant County District Attorney's office. We've kept in touch pretty much ever since. (And, no sir, it's not what you are thinking.)

News About Turning Left

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. on Wednesday will announce his intent to move to Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in 2008. That's important for reasons I really don't understand. Maybe they have better mechanics over there, will give an extended warranty that covers the transmission, or maybe they gave him a heck of a deal on trade-in on that #8 car. Anyway, it's big news.

Alternative Headlines:
- "All I Want To Do Is Race, Daddy."
- "Take A Break, Driver 8"

The Rangers #1 Pick In This Week's Draft

Blake Beavan from Irving. Possibly, based upon the footage I've seen, the cockiest kid in America. (Pic from his myspace page that has since been locked as "private.")

NBC's New Reality Show

The promo: "It's often said that love is blind... but is that really true? If given the chance to choose a woman in her 20s, or a 40-something on the prowl, will a man go for youth or maturity? More than just a dating competition, 'Age of Love' is a social experiment based on the question: When it comes to falling in love, does age really matter?"

The Hotties v. The Cougars. Let the cat fight begin.

Nightly Dream

I can't remember much of my wheels off dream from last night. But I do recall riding in a truck with a Decatur trooper on an icy mountain stretch in Runaway Bay. (Yep, you read that right.) The blue pick-up flipped over on the ice and we were headed off the cliff until I stuck my leg out the window and brought the vehicle to a stop.